Giddy up board game

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an equestrian board and dice game in which the winner successfully navigates a horse around a race track and the winner is the first horse to reach the finish line. Appropriate for children and adults, the Giddy Up is created for two or more players, approximately ages six and older. Designed to be played on any flat surface, this game is comprised of a playing board, a pair of six-sided dice, and horse playing pieces

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This patent application claims priority under 35 USC 119 (a) (1) fromU.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/462,150 filed Jan. 28,2011, of common inventorship herewith entitled, “Giddy Up Board Game.”

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention pertains to the field of board games, and morespecifically to the field of horse racing board games.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The prior art has put forth several designs for horse racing boardgames. Among these are:

U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,546 to Frederick A. Cerulla describes a horse racingboard game with a pivoting planar board that contains a series of sixstraightly aligned racing tracks.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,568 to Janet D. Welsh describes a horse racing boardgame with a plurality of parallel racing tracks in a straight line tothe finish line.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,665 to Harry W Rickabaugh describes a horse racingboard game which fully simulates the race track experience with an ovalrace course, horses, infield area, money, betting tickets, chips, andchance and odd cards.

None of these prior art references describe the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple andimproved board game of the horse racing experience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective front view of the present invention showing thegame logo, the horse race track, playing pieces and a pair of six-sideddice uniquely designed for this board game.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the game board of the present invention,

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

More than two thousand years ago, man discovered that an animal from theEquus order was good for carrying man's burdens and lightening his load.Following this discovery was the idea that these fast creatures can raceone another and entertain humans in the process. Humans started breedinghorses to run faster and longer distances. Since royalty and nobilityfinanced breeding race horses, horse racing Is referred to as the Sportof Kings. The Roman Empire was obsessed with the sport, and the earlyOlympic games featured horse racing. In current times, a popular racingevent known as the Triple Crown is a combination of three famous racesincluding the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes and the PreaknessStakes

The present invention, hereinafter referred to as the GIDDY UP, is anequestrian board and dice game in which the winner successfullynavigates a horse around a racing track and the winner is the firsthorse to reach the finish line. Appropriate for children and adults, theGiddy Up is created for two or more players, approximately ages six andolder. Designed to be played on any flat surface, this game is comprisedof a playing board, a pair of six-sided dice, and horse playing pieces.The board itself features an oval track, divided into seven rows withtwenty segments in each row. The oval track contains a starting gate aswell as a finish line. The dice are marked with distinct numbers todetermine a players movement. The first die contains the legends +1, −1,+1, +2, −2, +2, on each of its six sides. The companion die features thelegends +1, +2, +3, +4, −4, and “Start Over”, on each of its six sides.To start a game of Giddy Up, a player rolls the first die with the lowerodds. This roll can get the horse past the fourth segment, or the firstturn on the track. After this first roll, the next player can roileither die and moves their horse accordingly. Selecting which die toroll provides the player with a strategy plan to play it safe with lowerodds or take a risk with higher odds. Play continues in this fashion ashorses pull ahead or lag behind based on the roll of the die. The horsethat reaches the finish line first is declared the winner. Simplydesigned, the entire Giddy Up game Is packaged in an attractivecardboard box.

The Giddy Up can be enjoyed by children as well as adults. Horseenthusiasts will appreciate the equestrian theme game and the goodnatured fun it provides. Containing minimal components, this unique gamewill be packaged in a compact box set, providing easy storage as well astransport. The combination of the equestrian theme and the excitement ofthe rolling of the dice will make this novel invention a popular boardgame. The Giddy Up is a cleverly designed product invention that offersplayers a fun and exciting game of luck and strategy. Both simple andchallenging, this entertaining and social game effectively fosterscamaraderie and competition at an affordable price.

Although this invention has been described with respect to specificembodiments, it is not intended to be limited thereto and variousmodifications which will become apparent to the person of ordinary skillin the art are intended to fall within the spirit and scope of theinvention as described herein taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings and the appended claims.

1. A horse racing board game, comprising: an equestrian board, dice andhorse playing pieces, wherein the players navigate a horse playing piecearound an oval racing track printed on the board and the winner is thefirst horse to reach the finish line, wherein the oval track is dividedinto seven rows with twenty segments in each row, and further whereinthe oval track contains a starting gate as well as a finish line.
 2. Thegame of claim 1 wherein the dice comprise a pair of six-sided dice,wherein the dice are marked with distinct numbers to determine aplayer's movement, wherein the faces of the first die show the markings.+1, −1, +1, +2, −2, +2. on each of its six sides, and wherein the seconddie show the markings +1, +2, +3, +4, −4. and “Start Over”, on each ofits six sides.
 3. The game of claim 2 wherein play of the game startswhen a player rolls the first die, then the player moves their horseplaying piece according to the marking on the die, then, the next playercan roll either die and moves their horse playing piece according to themarking on the die, then another plays by rolling either die and movingtheir horse playing piece according to the markings on the die, playcontinues until one horse playing place reaches the finish line, and isdeclared the winner.